Michael James Shea

Mike was born on April 1, 1966 in Pittsburgh, PA. Those who knew him closely know exactly how perfect an April Fool’s birthday was for him. While his family moved to St. Genevieve, MO when he was 14, his roots stayed deep and left him a lifelong Pittsburgh Steelers fan. Mike was a member of a very large family, surrounded by 8 siblings and his loving parents.

At the age of 18, Mike joined the U.S. Navy. During Mike’s 26 years of service, he served 15 of those years at sea, mainly in the Anti-Submarine Warfare field. His last sea duty was on the USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58). When not at sea he chose hard assignments, such as Recruiting and Instructor duties, where he could help shape and train the future Sailors of the U.S. Navy.

Mike was well awarded during his Naval career earning 3 Navy & Marine Corps Commendation Medals, 6 Navy & Marine Corps Achievement medals, 4 Navy Good Conduct Medals, to go along with numerous Unit, Command, Personal and Service Awards.

After his retirement from the Navy, Mike took a brief pause before he embarked on his second chapter, civilian life. He worked at FIS from June of 2011 until his passing, ending his time there as a Senior Production Support Specialist.

Mike was born with a servant’s heart and spent the majority of his years in service to others. In his early years it was to his country, and in his later years it was spreading his love and knowledge of archery to others. Mike served as president of Fort Caroline Archery Club, Vice-President & Tournament Director of North Florida Archers and most importantly, spent 15 years as Coach Mike for Brooks Rehabilitation Adaptive Sports and Recreation. Mike spent countless hours coaching those who may have never had the opportunity to explore the sport he loved. He touched innumerable lives who are forever changed. At the forefront of everything he did was FUN, always finding a way to make hard work and learning a good time. In addition to his own volunteer pursuits, he could often be found working alongside Suzy at many of her work activities when his help was needed. He never said no when she asked, donating his time to surf cleanup, barbecuing at tournaments, managing buses & so much more at the Challenge Mile, as well as anything else that may be needed. He truly was her “other half,” as she affectionately called him.

Mike will be lovingly remembered and missed by his fiancé and love of his life, Suzy Blalock; siblings Cheryl Otte (Gary), Dave Shea, Lynda Porter (Randy), Denise Naeger (Benny), Darlene Shea, Laura Shea & John Shea; granddaughter Payton Gould; several nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews and other extended family. He was preceded in death by his father & mother, James & Lois Shea. Additionally, Mike had a very large archery family who were a huge part of his life and will miss him greatly.

A graveside service for Mike will be held Friday, November 17, 2023 at 2:30 PM at Jacksonville National Cemetery, 4083 Lannie Rd., Jacksonville, FL 32218.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the two following organizations that were near and dear to Mike’s heart:

Brooks Adaptive Sports and Recreation: Donations can be made by visiting their website at https://brooksrehab.org/brooks-foundation/. Please be sure to include “For Adaptive Sports in memory of Mike Shea” in the Donation Designation box. Checks can also be mailed to:

Brooks Foundation

Attn: Kristal Fuentes

3599 University Blvd. S.

Jacksonville, FL 32216

*Please include For Adaptive Sports in memory of Mike Shea in the memo

North Florida Archers: Donations can be made by visiting their website at northflarchers.org and clicking the link at the top. Please be sure to include “In memory of Mike Shea” in the note section. Checks can also be mailed to:

North Florida Archers Target Fund

PO Box 1387

Orange Park, FL 32067-1367

*Please include In memory of Mike Shea in the memo

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.hgstjohns.com for the Shea family.